The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1887-04-23

meat. This offers the fishermen great op.
portunities, and every year they haul il
hundreds of these fierce fish. Offthe New
England coast, men go out every fall tC
hunt sharks. On clear days, when the
surface of the ocean is comparatively calm
the animals are very abundant and little
difficulty is experienced in hauling in from
eight to ten in one day. The bodies are
brought ashore and sent to the mills thai
make fertilizers, and the teeth, after being
extracted, are fashioned into delicate LITTLE
ornaments, set in gold, for ladies to wear
The beaches in many places, after the sum
mer season is over, are strewn with bleach
ing sharks heads which the summer visi-
tors caught during their short sojourn neal
the sea. The sport attached TO the work
of hauling in the great monsters is the
principal inducement for hunting them.
A large, strong whaleboat is fitted out with
all the necessary appurtenances and
taken at sufficient distance from the
shore. A large shark hook is then attach
ed to the end of rope and thrown over
board. The bait used is sometimes beef
pork or CLANS The shark is not particular
about its diet, and it quickly swallows the
luscious morsel, including hook, line ant
all. 1t then starts off in another direction
reeling out the long rope as it does so, un
til the fisherman gradually checks its head
way, and ultimately brings it to sudden
standstill. Then they begin to reel in Oh
their end of the line and in short time
boat and shark come so close together that
they have an opportunity of scrutinizing
each other. Like the Goldfish, the shark
allows itself to be dragged through the
water like log, offering no resistance, mol
making any splashing time But when ii
is drawn close to the boat and its sharp eye
catches the first glimpse of its deadly enc
mics, then it begins to manifest its dis
pleasure in way that is appalling to q
greeuhorn. 1t dashes hither and thitheI
with the impetuosity of despair, churnine
the water into great pillows with its strong
tail, and making the whaleboat rock up
and down like cockleshell. But its effor 4
prove of no avail; the heavy reel slowly
winds around and draws it nearer to its
fate. The executioner stands in the bow
of the boat with his heavy club or axe and
watches the antics of the creature with
sharp eyes, ready to administer the fatal
blow as soon as the word is given. With
a furious dive the huge monster dashes
madly at the side of the boat, and then be-
fore the club can descend it retreats and
rushes off in another direction The blood,
meanwhile, issues from its throat in red
stream and cOlors the surrounding water to
a dark crimson. A few sharp fins can be
seen dozen yards distant, approaching the
scene of combat slowly and cautiously
They have scented the blood of the wound
ed shark, and have hurried up to see the
cause of the conflict The sight of the
men in the boat, however, keeps them at a
respectful distance. Suddenly the great
jaws of the captured animal dart out of the
water close to the side of the whaleboat,
and, before they can be shut again, re-
sounding blow from the man at the bow OF
the boat falls upon the great head. A
dark film rushes across the glaring eyes,
and stream of blood bursts forth from
the nostrils, The creature makes anQther
desperate effort to close its jaws upon the
boat, or anything in its reach, but the
heavy blows are rained rapidly upon the
round head, until the brains ooze out o.
the heavy cuts in the skull. A convulsive
gasp runs through the large mass, and
with gurgle the animal rolls over dead.
ENTIcED TO DEATH.
The first shark being killed the sports
men feel their spirits rising, and efforts are
made to catch others. The dead animal
is secured to the boat by another piece Of
rope, and then allowed to float some dis
tance off in the ocean. The harpoonel
then takes his station at the head of the
boat again, and waits for further game
The numerous fins that have been noticed
around the boat soon approach closer to
the dead CARCASS, attracted thither by the
blood When the voracious creatures have
approached near enough to the tempting
bait, turn in the reel is taken and the
dead animal drawn step or two nearer the
whale boat. The other sharks follow il
cautiously, and this operation being re-
peated several times the whole school Of
fnny monsters find themselves tempted
within the reach of the harpoon. A big
monster is then singled out, and with a
loud whirring noise the heavy iron harpoon
rushes through the air and buries its head
into the body of the daring fish. Instant
ly great commotion follows in the water.
The uninjured ones dart hurriedly away
and seek safety in distance: The wounded
one follows, bgt is suddenly brought to a
standstill by the harpooner, who throws
the other end of his rope around the reel,
and instantly gets ready another iron jaw
elm, which he also buries into the mass of
living flesh. This shark is dispatched with
greater rapidity than the first one, as the
harpoons often sink so deeply into the body
that vital spot is touched, If the school
can be eAticed to the side of the whaleboat
again, this operation is repeated as often
as it proves effective. The sharks are then
towed to the beach and hauled upon the
sand, where they are disposed of by the
fishermen. The boat is then once more
put out to sea, and another line and hook,
temptingly baited and thrown overheard.
Several Journeys are thus made in a day.
Inc average WelgnC OF Tue great nsh varies
between 400 and 800 pounds, and occa-
sionally one weighing nearly 1000 pounds
is caught The work of drawing in such
a monster proves most exciting sport, and
the more danger that is run the more at
tractive appears the work.
One afternoon in the autumn of 1879 a
party Of fishermen weie engaged in this
sport off Nantucket. After couple of
hours exciting work the fishermen had
managed to catch three immense fish, which
they tied to the stern of their boat, and
started for the beach. A school of sharks,
attracted by the red blood, surrounded the
whale boat on every side. As the boat
moved toward the long line of sandy beach
a crimson track was left behind by the dead
sharks. This proved tempting to the other
voracious creatures, and, as if by mutual
consent, they all started in pursuit of the
inert masses of flesh that we're floating away.
A dozen or more sharks seized upon the
dead bodies and began lively fight for
the pieces. The headway of the boat was
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